Brave The Cave
by Ashe Corinthos
Summary: Violet wanted a flower. So she sends four people into a cave to get it. ( A Sims Party One-shot)


**Heya guys! Don't worry, everyone, I'm working on the next chapter of Forbidden Love. With all my NaNo-ing, I didn't have time. But now that that's over, I'm revving to go! However, I** **figured that I'd give you all something to read while you wait! I hope you all enjoy 'Brave The Cave"!**

* * *

Violet wanted a flower.

No, it wasn't just any ordinary flower. It was a rare flower, found only in a certain cave. She had to take care of Poppy all the time, and could not go find it herself. So she commissioned her friends Kiara, Reylinn, Elmira and Mel the task of retrieving it for her.

Outside of the cave, the four knew that it would be dangerous. They prepared themselves. Kiara was cautious, and hoped only for them to get in, get the flower, and get out without any problems. Reylinn was not as careful, and hoped that inside she'd see many different creatures, like vampires and ghouls. Elmira hated the fact that she even had to go, having been forced into it by Reylinn only over the assumption that it would make her even more attractive to Barney. And Mel loved caves, so he was quick to volunteer for the job.

Violet waved them goodbye as they entered the cave and disappeared into the dark depths. However, she did not inform them of the rumors going around about a merciless creature that lurked within. _They'll be just fine. _She thought, looking into the cave and watching the lights from their lanterns fade. _I trust in my friends. I'm sure that __it is nothing to be worried over. _It is then that Poppy calls to her from afar, and she walks away from the cave entrance.

No more than a few minutes later, a large form enters the cave, covered in shadow.

This is where their journey begins.

* * *

" I'm so bored!" Reylinn exclaims, walking beside Kiara. Their footsteps echo loudly in the cave. " I wish there was some kind of monster in here!"

" Reylinn..." Kiara says tiredly. They've been over this dozens of times. " I told you, it's all probably just myth. "

" But what if it isn't?" Reylinn presses. " It could all be true! That would be so awesome!" Her eyes glow with excitement. Kiara sighs.

" I hope we just get in, then get out without a problem." Elmira says huffily from behind them. " I dislike the damp and the dark."

" It's so cool though, Elmira!" Mel says, coming up to them. " Look around! I mean, how can you not like caves?! This place is amazing!"

" I envy your enthusiasm." Elmira says dryly.

Kiara sighs once more and swings her lantern about. The walls are a light blue from what she can tell, and there are sections of ground missing every once in a while. " Watch where you step, everyone," She calls to them.

It's quiet for a few minutes with only the sound of their feet stepping over loose rock. Kiara's long hair swishes about her back as she turns to make sure they're all still there. There are some caves branching off from this one, and she doesn't want anyone to get lost. " There's Reylinn... Elmira... Where's Mel?" She questions.

" BOO!" A loud yell behind her causes her to drop her lantern and whirl around, eyes wide in her moment of fright. Mel stands there, grinning ear to ear, having tricked her.

" Mel! Why did you do that!" Kiara says crossly. " That was completely unnecessary. " She turns back to the remains of her lantern, it having broken into pieces on impact. " Now we've broken one of Violet's lanterns!"

" Oops. Sorry." He says, not really looking sorry. " I'll buy her a new one. You should have seen your face, though!" He laughs loudly.

" That was mean." Reylinn says, looking angry. " Now we don't have one of our lanterns. We needed those!"

" Oh, come on! None of you know how to have any fun!" He says, his face contorted weirdly. " Wish I'd have gone on this mission with some other people. People who actually enjoy my jokes. " He sticks his tongue out at the girls and then walks ahead of them, lantern swinging.

" He's being a jerk today," Reylinn mutters. " When we were setting up to come in here, he did the exact same thing to me!"

" I wonder what's got into him today..." Kiara wonders aloud.

" I don't care. I just hope this is over soon. " Elmira says, her severe face a mask of annoyance. " I need to get out of here in time to meet Barney for our date!"

Reylinn rolls her eyes and stifles a giggle. Kiara bites her tongue and nods. " Yes, well, alright. Let's catch up to him quickly then. "

So the three walk forward. However, they don't see a trace of Mel anywhere. " Mel?" Reylinn calls.

Suddenly, a long, drawn out scream vibrates the entirety of the cave. " It's coming from in front of us! Let's go!" Kiara shouts. " Mel! Are you okay?!"

No answer. The trio runs toward the sound, but stops short. A gap that stretches from both sides of the cave separates them from continuing into the cave, unless they jumped over.

" Look." Elmira says, walking past the other two stunned girls and picking something up off the ground. It's a piece of white paper.

" That's most likely from Mel's clothes." Kiara puts together.

" Then... he fell in?!" Reylinn concludes with a bit of fear. " Oh no!" She runs over and kneels down beside the gap. " Mel?! Mel, are you okay?!"

" Rey, that isn't going to work. " Kiara says sadly. " Who knows how far that goes down. We're going to keep going, get the flower for Violet, then go get help. "

" Why don't we just go get help now?!" Elmira says, turning to Kiara. " Who cares about a stupid flower? I'm done. I don't want to be part of this any longer. " She starts to walk off.

" Elmira, we can't split up!" Kiara walks over and places a hand on the older woman's shoulder. " We need to stick together. We've come this far. We can't just-"

" _Kiara!_"

Kiara turns and sees Reylinn balancing precariously over the edge of the gap, fighting to keep her balance. " Help me!" She screams.

Elmira and Kiara race to her side and grab onto her flailing hands. However, she keeps being yanked backwards. Kiara glances down and sees two misshapen things grabbing onto her ankles.

" Keep pulling! Hold on, Reylinn!" Kiara says, gripping onto Reylinn with all her might. With a fantastic yank by both her and Elmira, Reylinn falls forward on top of the two. All of them are breathing hard.

" T-Thanks..." Reylinn stutters as she gets up. " T-That was really s-scary." She looks over at the edge. Not a sign of whatever had been trying to pull her over.

" It's nothing. Come on. Let's... Let's keep going. " Kiara says, unsteadily. Maybe they should turn back. _No, keep going. We've already gotten this far. get the flower, then make a run for it. Don't let this get the better of you. _ " It's.. It's probably just Mel playing a trick. "

" Really?" Reylinn says hopefully. Despite her earlier excitement over monsters and ghosts, she looks very frightened by it once it became even remotely possible.

" Yeah. Let's go, guys." I say. I look at Elmira. " If you want to go back, then go. But we're going on with or without you."

She barely hesitates. " F-fine, I'll go. But only because I want to." Elmira says stiffly, putting her glasses back up on her nose. " So let's get a move on! I told you both already, I have a date today!" Her voice is much more high-pitched than usual, hinting to her true feelings of fear.

Kiara rolls her eyes, but nods to the both of them. " Be careful. We don't want to have anything else happen to us. " With that, she leads her small group deeper into the cave.

It's clear they're all getting closer to the flower. Violet had said that the flower is in the deepest part of the cave, and when they got to that point the rock would change color, from blue to purple. All around them, the azure rocks had changed into a deep amethyst. So, indeed they must be getting closer. Reylinn casts her gaze around warily.

" Just hold out a little while longer," Kiara whispers to the girls reassuringly.

Elmira abruptly screams. Both teenage girls whip around to see her falling backwards into one of the gaps along the wall. They both sprint over, but they're too late. She disappears down into the pitch blackness.

" E-Elmira!" Reylinn says with tears brewing in her eyes. " She-she's...!"

Kiara isn't sure how to react. Elmira is gone, unreachable. It's beginning to look much more tempting to just turn around and leave, and tell Violet to go get the flower herself if she wants it that badly.

" Kiara?"

Reylinn's looking at Kiara with a fear filled expression. " W-w-what do we do?"

Kiara deliberates seriously. " I..." She swallows. " Come on. We're almost there. We can do it! Then we'll never, ever come back into this cave ever again. C'mon, Reylinn. Stay close. We'll make it. "

" But Kiara, I don't-"

Kiara's looks at Reylinn with a silencing look. " I'm scared too. Very, in fact. But as long as we stick together we can face off against whoever or whatever is after us. Okay?"

" Okay..." Reylinn murmurs.

" Alright. Now come on." Kiara takes hold of Reylinn's wrist and tugs her along.

The two scared girls slowly make their way through the remainder of the cave. They turn a corner, and stop. In front of them, like a beacon, is the ugliest flower they've ever seen. Coincidentally, it is the flower Violet's after. It's under a large beam of light, beckoning them.

" Kiara! We found it!" Reylinn squeals in delight.

" I know!" Kiara says with equal happiness. " We did it! We finally found Violet's flower!"

Reylinn runs over to it, cupping the disgusting head of the flower in her hands delicately. " I'll just take this- Ahh!"

Something dark runs out and hits Reylinn over the head with a large rock. She falls forward, nearly crushing the flower, unconscious.

" Reylinn!" Kiara yells, taking a step forward. " What have you done?!" Then her breath freezes in her lungs.

" Oh, her. She was in my way. " Mel says, grinning through his white wrappings.

" Mel... why?" She says in a small voice.

His expression is wicked, his small beady eyes blank. " I did what I had to." He leans down and brushes some of Reylinn's light brown ponytail out of her face. " I mean, of course this wasn't exactly what I had planned out but... "

" Get away from her!" Kiara grimaces, as she regrets the words as soon as they're out. However, she continues. " Mel, what... why have you done this?"

He stands straight and turns to her, eyes narrow. " Why? Because no one cares about Mel the Mummy. I've tried to get people to like me. I made up my own contest, helped people, tried to be friendly. But I was always on the sidelines. Never put first. This trip clinched it for me, when you reacted the way you did to my prank. It only confirmed that my assumption was correct. So I decided that I wouldn't take it any more. it was high time to get noticed. And I would start it all... with you three. Easily. With no one else around to get in my way, it was almost too easy."

" Did you.. did you kill Elmira?" Kiara asks slowly.

He laughs maniacally. " What do you think?" Her heart sinks. _He's... He's gone mad!_ _Poor Elmira._

Mel continues. "I faked my death earlier, to get all of you scared. One of my best tricks yet. Then I waited for the perfect opportunity. I was going to kill Reylinn first. But nooo, you had to prevent it. You had to play the hero. I was very angry with you. " He rubs the rock in his hands, looking at it almost lovingly. " Of course, there is no way I could ever stay mad at you." His eyes light on Kiara's, and a chill goes down her back.

Menacingly, he takes steps toward her. " Do you know what the real reason is that I chose this path? Why I'm trying to get noticed? "

She shakes her head emphatically. _I just have to buy time. If I can just get out... But I can't leave Reylinn!_

" You. You, Kiara. " He takes another step towards her, and she involuntarily moves back. " I have been trying to get you to see me for years. To notice me and my feelings. But like everyone else, you were completely oblivious to my existence. I saw how you always looked at Goth Boy, and how he always looked at you. It made my blood boil. " He grits his teeth. "My time to get you was running out. "

Perhaps Kiara's feelings for Goth Boy hadn't been hidden well enough. To know that someone had noticed... What makes it worse, though, is what Mel is implying. " Mel... What did you do to him?" Her voice trembles. _Please, let him be alright..._

" Oh, don't worry. He's still alive. " She lets out a sigh of relief. " Don't know for how long, but for now, he is. "

" I-I'm sorry, Mel. I had no idea..." Kiara starts, but he cuts her off.

" I did everything I could to show you that I loved you! I even sent you flowers and a note, put it on your front step. Goth Boy found it before you did, and threw them in the trash! It was as if he was throwing me into that garbage bin. I am so sick of being crushed, forgotten, treated as little more than an insect!" His voice booms, echoing very loudly throughout the cavern.

" Mel, I..." _Think. Think fast!_ " I wish I'd have known. "

" It's too late for regrets. " Mel's eyes flash dangerously. " Far, far too late. I'm sorry, Kiara. But it's about time I stopped letting people walk all over me and started walking over them instead. Sadly, that also means that I need to establish my dominance. Starting with you." He lunges at her in a surprise move, swinging the heavy rock. Taken off-guard, she barely gets out of the way in time, as he smashes the rock down where her head had been.

" Mel, please!" She begs him. " We can talk this out! "

" I'm done talking!" He reaches out and grabs her shirt, yanking her over and gripping her roughly. Kiara struggles, but she is unable to shake his iron-like grasp. " Now is the time for action!"

Without warning, just as Mel raises his rock to crush her head, something large and unidentifiable rushes over and knocks him over. Freed but unbalanced, Kiara falls to her hands and knees. She watches as whatever it is rips the rock from Mel's hands and throws it away, letting it skid a few feet away.

" Let go of me! Let go!" Mel fights, slamming his fists into the figure, but it refuses to let go. He manages to get the upper hand on the creature, and pushes it off for a moment. He reaches for the rock, but the monster steps on his hand.

Kiara stares as the human shaped thing reaches over and grabs for the rock, successfully retrieving it, then hits Mel over the head with it. Mel instantly stops moving, going limp. Kiara, feeling horrified by what she saw, backs away, hands up to her face, bracing herself to be the next victim. Her eyes close tightly in expectation of a hopefully painless death.

" Kiara, are you alright?"

Shocked, she removes her hands from her face and is confronted by none other than Goth Boy. His black and red hair is disheveled from his struggle with Mel. How she didn't recognize him, she'll never know.

She throws her arms around his neck, tears streaming down her face. " Goth Boy! I'm so happy to see you!"

He hugs her back gently. " I'm glad to see you're safe. " He lets go of her and looks down at Mel's unconscious form. " I knew this guy was insane, but I didn't realize he'd go so far as to try to kill all of you. I came just in time. "

She nods, unable to speak. He goes over and picks Reylinn up, carrying her. " Come on. Let's get out of here. It's all over. " He gives Kiara a small smile.

Feeling an almost unbearable relief, she walks beside Goth Boy and leaves the cave, knowing she will never, ever go back in.

Outside the cave, hours later and in Violet's home, she realizes she never got Violet's flower for her. _it doesn't matter. If she wants it, she can send someone else. I'm done doing cave missions. _She smiles at Reylinn, who is awake and completely functional, getting away with only a bump on the head when it could have been much worse. Goth Boy sits beside her on the dark couch, holding her hand reassuringly, as she tells her tale to the police.

_Never again will I go back into that cave. _

* * *

Inside the cave, the moonlight barely illuminating the flower and inside of the cavern, a large, masculine and hairy creature drags Mel deep into the shadows. His screams are unheard in the dark night.

The scary looking, ugly flower is covered in specks of red liquid over it's yellow and brown petals. 

* * *

Author's Note: I hope everyone enjoyed! I loved the Brave The Cave mini-game in My Sims Party, and saw the perfect opportunity for a fanfic. Read and review! Love you all!

Disclaimer: I do not own a single part of any of the Sims games.


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